90s

When it comes to female groups, past and present TLC, will forever be my favourite. But this post is not about TLC, it’s about another female group who if I had to name my second favourite of all time would certainly fit neatly into that slot. Of course I am talking about Total!

New Jersey-bred trio Jakima ‘Kima’ Raynor, Keisha Spivey and Pamela ‘Pam’ Long made their presence well and truly felt when they burst onto the music scene with their debut self-titled album back in 1996. They were the first female group to come out of Sean ‘Puff Daddy’ Combs’ Bad Boy Records stable and possessed the same perfect combination of attitude, swagger and great music all Bad Boy artists (Faith Evans, 112, Ma$e and of course Biggie) from that era did! To sum it up Total were the ‘hood TLC (with their own something special)’ as I’ve heard people say time and time again. Can’t You See, Kissing You, No One Else (all from their first album) are still played in clubs today, and have becoming r&b classics over the years.

I was pleasantly surprised to see singer/actress Brandy rocking her old school signature braids this week. Considering it comes hot on the heels of both Solange Knowles and Kim Kardashain sporting the style, it makes me wonder if the long plaited look is making a comeback in the showbiz world.

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90210 is a teen drama and spin-off of popular 90s TV series Beverly Hills 90210. The show made its debut on US TV (The CW) in 2008, and hit UK screens (E4) the following year.

The plots centre around Annie (Shenae Grimes) and her adopted brother Dixon Wilson (Tristan Wilds), who move with their mum and dad from laid-back Kansas to the more fast-paced Beverly Hills. The title, is a shorter version of the original, and is taken from the city’s zipcode.

In the 80s and early 90s cable channel The Box was the place to go if you wanted to be in the loop with the hottest music videos out there. The beauty of The Box, unlike the music channels today, was that it was up-to-date with all the stuff happening in the US. It showed everything that was being played over there at the same time. As a fan of hip hop and r&b, this was a dream come true.

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Jodeci recently made their way back onto the music scene via the song and video Knockin’ Your Heels Off, a collaboration with fellow 90s s r&b group H Town. While the song isn’t bad per se, the video has had the Internet a buzz due to the deteriorated appearance of the group, most especially Jodeci’s former resident pretty boy Mr Dalvin. Imisstheoldschool.com are surprised people are…err… surprised about his form as this is not the first time we have had a look at how the past years have treated Jodeci. Their UK show a couple of years ago, coupled with less than flattering pictures, which have been circulating the net from time, already gave us that idea.